Antonov AN-124

Historical safety data and incident record for the Antonov AN-124 aircraft.

Safety Rating

8.1/10

Total Incidents

5

Total Fatalities

97

Incident History

Volga-Dnepr Airlines

Novosibirsk-Tolmachevo Novosibirsk oblast

The four engine airplane departed Seoul-Incheon Airport on a cargo flight to Vienna, with an intermediate stop in Novosibirsk, carrying 14 crew members and a load consisting of 84 tons of automobile parts. Shortly after takeoff from runway 25 at Novosibirsk-Tolmachevo Airport, while in initial climb, a catastrophic failure occurred on the engine n°2. Several debris punctured the fuselage, damaging slats on both left and right side. As a result, radio communications were cut, the power supply failed and the thrust control on all three remaining engines dropped. The crew entered a circuit for an immediate return despite the aircraft was in an overweight condition for an emergency landing. After touchdown on runway 25 that offered an LDA of 3,597 metres, the crew started the braking procedure but the aircraft was unable to stop within the remaining distance. It overran, lost its both nose gears and slid in a snow covered field before coming to rest 300 metres further. All 14 occupants evacuated safely and the aircraft seems to be damaged beyond repair.

December 6, 1997 68 Fatalities

Russian Air Force - Voyenno-vozdushnye sily Rossii

Irkutsk-2 (Northwest/Vostochny) Irkutsk oblast

The four engine aircraft departed Irkutsk-2 Airport on a cargo flight to Cam Ranh Bay, with an intermediate stop in Vladivostok, carrying 15 passengers, eight crew members and a load consisting of two Sukhoi SU-27UB fighters to be delivered to the Vietnam Air Force. Three seconds after takeoff from runway 14 at Irkutsk-2 Airport, at a height of 5 metres, the engine n°3 failed. Six seconds later, at a height of 22 metres, both left engines n°1 and 2 also failed. The aircraft pitched up and entered a high angle of attack, climbed to a maximum height of about 66 metres then rolled to the left and crashed onto several buildings located 1,600 metres from the runway end. The aircraft was totally destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire as well as several buildings. All 23 occupants and 45 people on the ground were killed. Hundred other people on the ground were injured, some seriously.

October 8, 1996 4 Fatalities

Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines

Torino-Caselle Piedmont

The aircraft departed Moscow-Chkalovsky Airport bound for Torino, carrying 19 passengers and four crew members. The aircraft should be loaded with Ferrari cars to be delivered in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, following a fuel stop at Abu Dhabi Airport. While descending to Torino-Caselle Airport, the crew was informed about the weather conditions at destination: wind variable at 3 knots, visibility 2,000 metres, RVR runway 36 more than 1,500 metres, light rain, scattered at 1,500 feet, scattered at 3,500 feet, broken at 7,000 feet, OAT and dew point 13°C, QNH 1012. On final approach to runway 36, the crew was unable to establish a visual contact with the runway and the captain decided to initiate a go-around procedure. Unfortunately, this decision was taken too late. While climbing, the aircraft struck trees and crashed onto houses located in the village of San Francesco al Campo, about one km from the runway end. The aircraft, a house and a barn were destroyed. Both pilots, two people on the ground and 20 cows in the barn were killed.

November 15, 1993 17 Fatalities

Aviastar

Kerman Kermanshah

Completing its first commercial flight, the aircraft was returning to Tashkent on a ferry flight from Dubai with three passengers and 14 crew members on board. A fuel stop at Kerman was scheduled. On approach to Kerman, while in the holding pattern, the crew transmitted to ATC conflicting information about their position. In the meantime, he failed to follow the flight track in the holding pattern, causing a deviation from the prescribed route of 47 km to the north. After being cleared to descend to runway 34 from 8,200 metres to 5,200 metres in limited visibility, the crew followed an opposite route. After passing over the airfield, the crew started the descent from 3,300 metres, but failed to complete a standard turn and departed the approach path, flying towards the mountains up to 4,100 metres, with a deviation to the south of the airport by 43.5 km. Four minutes later, while completing a left turn to join the approach path at an unsafe altitude, the radio altimeter sounded in the cockpit. At a speed of about 385 km/h, the aircraft collided with Mt Jupar (3,400 metres high) located about 37 km southeast of the airport. The aircraft disintegrated on impact and all 17 occupants were killed.

October 13, 1992 8 Fatalities

Antonov Design Bureau

Kodra Kiev oblast

The aircraft departed Kiev-Gostomel Airport on a test flight part of a certification programme, carrying nine crew members. While cruising at an altitude of 19,000 feet and at a speed of 614 km/h, the radome disintegrated. This caused the front cargo door to open and to detach. Debris struck the engine n°3 that stopped automatically. The aircraft suffered strong vibrations and oscillations then the 3rd hydraulic system failed as well as the flight management system. In such conditions, the crew was unable to get valid data about speed, altitude or the angle of attack. The aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent during which flaps were selected down to reduce the speed, but due to an asymmetrical release of flaps, the descent rate increased until the aircraft crashed in a wooded area located 1,5 km south of Korda and 43 km west of Gostomel Airport. The aircraft was destroyed and eight occupants were killed. The engineer survived after he bailed out during the descent but was seriously injured.

Safety Profile

Reliability

Reliable

This rating is based on historical incident data and may not reflect current operational safety.

Primary Operators (by incidents)

Aeroflot - Russian International Airlines1
Antonov Design Bureau1
Aviastar1
Russian Air Force - Voyenno-vozdushnye sily Rossii1
Volga-Dnepr Airlines1